Tao Geoghegan Hart impressed on his Team Sky debut with a strong performance in the break at Gran Piemonte.

In difficult wet and cold conditions the young British stagiaire pushed on up the road in a group of 13 riders early on, while behind the 185-kilometre test became a race of attrition.

Gradually the move began to fracture, beginning with the ascent of Alice Superiore, with Geoghegan Hart hanging tough until six riders remained before eventually slipping back.

Timo Roosen (Team Roompot), Fabio Felline (Trek Factory Racing) and Giorgio Brambilla (Etixx - Quick-Step) pushed on, but with the gap coming down to the peloton, the catch was eventually made with five kilometres to go, setting up an exciting finish.

Not keen to wait around for the sprint, Jan Bakelants (Ag2r-La Mondiale) attacked immediately and just held on for a solo victory in Cirie, four seconds ahead of the chasing pack. Matteo Trentin (Etixx - Quick-Step) and Sonny Colbrelli (Bardiani-CSF) rounded out the podium places.

With no recognised sprinter in the team it was Alex Peters who led Team Sky home, finishing in the reduced peloton, with Sebastian Henao arriving in the next group.

Richie Porte did not start the race on medical grounds after withdrawing from Thursday's Milano-Torino due to recurring pain.

After the race Sports Director Gabriel Rasch praised the efforts of Geoghegan Hart in a tough race. "Tao did a really good job out there to get in the break," he explained.

"We wanted to make sure we got someone in the break and the guys had the chance to get in there if it was big enough. In the end 13 guys went, which was just maybe in between what we expected. It just lacked maybe another one or two teams and I think it would have had a really good chance to stay away. That would have put Tao in with a great chance of a result.

"The conditions were tough today, and a lot of the guys are thinking about Lombardy on Sunday which is obviously a big target for a lot of people."